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Gad Elmaleh takes on a deeply personal project with Stay With Us, a semi-autobiographical film examining his own questions of faith and family. Like Gad, the character he plays finds himself drawn to Catholicism despite coming from a Sephardic Jewish background. This new direction in his spiritual path sparks dramatic tensions as his friends and family struggle to understand his religious transition.

Born in Morocco but raised between Casablanca and Paris, Gad spent much of his youth exploring life’s bigger questions. Coming from a culturally diverse region, he developed an open curiosity about beliefs beyond his own upbringing. This independent spirit served him well as a comedian in both France and America, but now returns him to his roots in unexpected ways.

When Gad visits his parents and sister in Paris, they’re blindsided by news of his upcoming baptism. Knowing it may strain their close bonds, Gad finds the situation growing more complex.

Despite originating so many important artistic movements throughout history, the country of France has apparently found stand-up comedy to be too complex a medium to master on their own, so they’ve taken to stealing classic American comedy routines and passing them off as originals. I can’t wait to see their version of “The Bourgeoisie.”

In American comedy culture, joke theft is considered to be a mortal sin that will tank the career of the sinner no matter how popular their Comedy Central sketch show may be. However, over in France, the enforcement of the whole “no plagiarism” rule in comedy is much more relaxed, similarly to how the cultural differences between us lead to very different philosophies on the 40-hour work week, underaged drinking and marital fidelity.

Six years ago, a bilingual YouTube channel called CopyComic Videos noticed a startling trend in the French comedy scene in which...

Gad Elmaleh (fan of Nanni Moretti and Woody Allen films) on the set of Stay With Us (Reste Un Peu) with his parents

Stand-up comedian Gad Elmaleh, the director and star of Stay With Us (co-written with Benjamin Charbit) plays a version of himself who explores a lifelong fascination with the Virgin Mary. After living in America, Gad returns to Paris, where he is welcomed by his parents, played by the actor’s actual mother and father, Régine and David, his sister Judith and old friends, which include the actor Roschdy Zem (star of Arnaud Desplechin’s Oh Mercy! with Léa Seydoux and Sara Forestier). Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, Simone Veil, and Henri Bergson get a shoutout as Gad reflects on some wide-ranging questions on faith as he meets with a priest (Father Barthélémy played by Nicolas Port), a rabbi (Pierre-Henry Salfati), a nun (Catherine Thiercelin), a theologian (Frédéric Lenoir), and...

The blockbuster French cast of Amazon Prime Video’s third season of “Lol: Qui rit, qui sort” speaks volumes about the Japanese variety format’s tremendous popularity in France.

The Amazon Original series, adapted from the format “Lol: Last One Laughing,” scored its biggest launch to date on Prime Video in France since bowing on March 10. The show is one of the streamer’s first unscripted originals in France and has been a major coup as a brand exercise that’s succeeded with limited resources — certainly in comparison to scripted comedy. Adaptations of “Lol” have also thrived in Italy and Germany where they have ranked as the most watched local titles on the service, respectively. Local versions are also available in Spain, Canada, Mexico and Australia (hosted by Rebel Wilson).

On the heels of its milestone success with “Lol: Qui rit, qui sort,” the French teams at Amazon Studios are...

Film Movement has bought North American rights to “Stay With Us,” a buzzed-about autobiographical comedy by Gad Elmaleh, the popular French actor, filmmaker and stand-up talent.

Represented in international markets by Studiocanal, the personal movie explores Elmaleh’s own ambivalent relationship to his Jewish faith and his interest for Catholicism.

Elmaleh plays his own role as a well-known French actor of Moroccan-Jewish heritage who returns home after spending three years in the U.S. where he lived the American Dream and made the bold decision to convert to Catholicism. When his parents, David and Regine, find out about their son’s plan, they’re absolutely shocked. They embark on a mission to bring Gad back to his Jewishness and turn his conversion plans in a battlefield. The comedy-laced film follows Gad as he manages to make his parents understand that his sincere love for the Virgin Mary does not call...

France’s box office is moving in an upward trajectory in November with 14.8 million admissions.

France’s box office is continuing to move in an upward trajectory in November with 14.8 million admissions for the month, the highest of the year so far according to figures from the Cnc.

The positive figures follow a decent October, when French theatres bounced back with 14.3 million admissions following the worst September in French box office history, with just 7.4 million tickets sold.

In total, 74 films were released in theatres in November, more than a pre-pandemic 61 in November 2019, an average of 15 films per week. US titles...

Arguably, Mexican film and television superstar Eugenio Derbez has already conquered the American market. His 2013 film “Instructions Not Included” is the highest grossing Spanish-language film in the U.S. and grossed 100 million worldwide. He earned a SAG Award as part of the “Coda” ensemble cast, which went on to win the Best Picture Oscar, and he co-starred in the hit action-adventure “Dora and the Lost City of Gold.”

However, the attempts to launch him as a romantic leading man — in 2017’s “How to Be a Latin Lover” and 2018’s “Overboard,” a remake of the 1987 comedy — haven’t exactly lit the world on fire, even if they have been profitable.

But if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again, and Derbez is back, with “Overboard” writers Bob Fisher and Rob Greenberg, starring in and producing Hulu’s “The Valet,” directed by Richard Wong. It’s a remake of the...

Amazon Prime Video France today published details of its upcoming slate of productions, including four new originals:

Greek Salad is a contemporary sequel to the movie trilogy L’Auberge Espagnole (Pot Luck), 20 years after the originals. It follows the lives of Tom and Mia (the children of Xavier and Wendy from L’Auberge Espagnole) as they embark on a new adventure in Athens. The eight episode series is created by Cédric Klapisch, with Lola Doillon and Antoine Garceau (Call my Agent). The show will be co-produced by Bruno Levy for Ce Qui Me Meut and will launch exclusively on Prime Video in 2022.

Flashback is the second Amazon original movie produced in France. This one is a time travel comedy starring comedian Caroline Vigneaux, with Sophia Aram, Suzanne Clément, Lison Daniel, Gad Elmaleh, Lannick Gautry, Emy Ltr, Florent Peyre and Sylvie Testud. It is produced by Alain Goldman for Legende Films and...

New slate includes projects spearheaded by filmmaker Cédric Klapisch and Ballsy Girl actress Melha Bedia.

Amazon Prime Video has unveiled a slate of French original productions, including Cédric Klapisch’s drama series Greek Salad, a spin-off of his 2002 hit feature Pot Luck (L’Auberge Espagnole), about a group of students from across Europe living in a flat in Barcelona together.

The new series follows the lives of the children of two of the original characters as they embark on a new adventure in Athens.

Kaplisch has created the eight-episode drama with Lola Doillon and Antoine Garceau, who both took credits (like...

New slate includes projects spearhead by filmmaker Cédric Klapisch and Ballsy Girl actress Melha Bedia.

Amazon Prime Video has unveiled a new slate of French original productions, including Cédric Klapisch’s drama Greek Salad, a spin-off of his 2002 hit feature Pot Luck (L’Auberge Espagnole), about a group of students from across Europe living in a flat in Barcelona together.

The new series follows the lives of the children of two of the original characters as they embark on a new adventure in Athens.

Kaplisch has created the eight-episode drama with Lola Doillon and Antoine Garceau, who both took credits (like...

Amazon Prime Video France has unveiled a slate of originals, including Cedric Klapisch’s “Greek Salad” — a series sequel to the “L’Auberge Espanole” trilogy — Melanie Laurent’s “Le Bal des Folles,” as well as live sports such as the tennis tournament Roland Garros, and adaptations of popular unscripted formats such as “Lol” and “Celebrity Hunted.” All titles will roll out on the streaming service later this year.

The programs were presented during a virtual press conference on Monday hosted by Georgia Brown, director of European Originals; Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios; Thomas Dubois, head of French Amazon Originals at Amazon Studios, Isabelle Bertrand, head of content for Amazon Prime Video France; and Alex Green, managing director of sport at Amazon Prime Video.

“Greek Salad” will be set in Athens, Greece, and follow the children of Xavier and Wendy, who were played by Romain Duris and Kelly Reilly, respectively,...

There are plenty of cultural divides that exist between Americans and the French, but frustrations with Tsa at the airport is not one of them. It just might be harder when you're Huge in France.

TV Guide has an exclusive clip from the Netflix comedy starring French comedian Gad Elmaleh. In the first

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Other Links From TVGuide.com Huge In FranceGad Elmaleh...

Gad Elmaleh can't cross the street in Paris without stopping to pose for multiple selfies. The French comedian is a household name is his home country, selling out arenas for his comedy shows, racking up millions at the box office and even brushing up against European royalty (he has a 5-year-old son with Charlotte Casiraghi, granddaughter of Princess Grace Kelly of Monaco). But here in Los Angeles, Elmaleh sheds his celebrity skin.

"When I'm here, I'm totally unknown," says the Morocco-born Jew, 47, seated in a corner booth at a '50s-style French-themed cocktail bar ...

Following the widely successful “C’est La Vie,” Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache’s (“The Intouchables”) passion project “The Specials” (“Hors normes”) starring Vincent Cassel and Reda Kateb, has already lured major buyers in key territories.

Gaumont, which delivered the largest number of French B.O. hits overseas in 2018, has pre-sold “The Specials” to Germany, Austria (Prokino), Greece (Seven), Italy (Videa), Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands (Cineart), Portugal (Lusomundo), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Ascot Elite), Israel (Lev), Canada, (MK2 Mile), Scandinavia (Scanbox), China (E Star), Taiwan (Moviecloud), Abania, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro (McF Megacom) Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (Mauris Films) and Poland (Kino Swiat).

“The Specials” is an uplifting drama about the true story of Stephane Benhamou and Daoud Tatou, two friends from different religious faiths who, 20 years ago, created a pair of non-profit organizations for children with severe autism.

Toledano and Nakache are best-known for directing “The Intouchables,” which scored $450 million worldwide.

Royal baby news! Charlotte Casiraghi and fiancé Dimitri Rassam have welcomed a baby boy, People reports. According to the outlet, the eldest daughter of Princess Caroline of Monaco gave birth to the couple's son on Tuesday morning at Princess Grace Hospital, which is named after Charlotte's grandmother, Grace Kelly. This is the first child for the couple, while Charlotte also has a son from her previous relationship with Gad Elmaleh. Charlotte gave birth to her first son, Raphaël, in Dec. 2013. Dimitri, who is the son of French actress and model Carole Bouquet, also has a daughter from his marriage to model Masha Novoselova. Dimitri and Masha tied the knot in 2010 and welcomed...

On Wednesday, September 12, Good+ Foundation, a national nonprofit founded by Jessica Seinfeld that provides training and support to fathers and families living in poverty, hosted “An Evening of Comedy + Music” Benefit at Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Chrissy Teigen and John Legend at An Evening of Comedy + Music

Credit/Copyright: Getty Images for Good+ Foundation

The special evening, which raised nearly $2 million for the organization’s work helping families build stability and create an upward trajectory for their children, celebrated the organization’s accomplishments and its evolution to better engage fathers for the benefit of their children, families and communities.

The memorable night featured performances by renowned comedian and headliner Jerry Seinfeld, along with Leslie Jones, Gad Elmaleh and Sebastian Maniscalco. In addition, music superstar John Legend performed hits including “Love Me Now” and “All of Me” while Common performed alongside Robert Glasper and Karriem Riggins of his supergroup,...

Today Good+ Foundation, a national nonprofit founded by Jessica Seinfeld that addresses multi-generational poverty, revealed that recording artist, actor and activist Common will perform and Pro Football Hall of Famer and distinguished co-host of Good Morning America Michael Strahan will make a special appearance at the 2018 Good+ Foundation Benefit on Wednesday, September 12 presented at Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

“An Evening of Comedy + Music” will also feature previously revealed headlining performances by renowned comedian Jerry Seinfeld, along with Leslie Jones, Gad Elmaleh and Sebastian Maniscalco as well as musical sensation John Legend. Common will also perform alongside Robert Glasper and Karriem Riggins of his supergroup, August Greene, who will act as the evening’s official house band. Additional VIP guests to be announced in the coming weeks.

Since 2001, Good+ Foundation has provided low-income families with the social services, education, support and dignity necessary to...

Jose Levy’s Creative Andina and Mexico’s Lemon Films have jointly acquired the remake rights to 2006 French romantic comedy “Hors de Prix” (“Priceless”) for Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Colombia.

Deal was closed at Cannes with the original’s producer, Philippe Martin of Les Films Pelleas.

Pierre Salvadori helmed and co-wrote the hit comedy starring Audrey Tautou, best known for her breakout lead role in “Amelie,” and French-Moroccan stand-up comedian/actor, Gad Elmaleh.

The romantic comedy turns on a young woman who latches onto wealthy men to maintain her luxurious lifestyle. She mistakes a handsome waiter for a rich patron, but when she realizes he is penniless, she teaches him some gold-digging skills. Inevitably, love triumphs over the trappings of wealth.

The feature was hailed by Le Point magazine as “one of the best comedies of the year” in 2006 to which it “owes a lot to the performance of...

Last year, Netflix went all in with stand-up comedy, managing to talk Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle and Tracy Morgan into doing their first specials in years. This year, they’ve already done the same with Chris Rock, Ricky Gervais and coming soon, Ellen DeGeneres. But it’s still an incredible amount of comedy to wade through. We’re here to help, ranking each special from worst to best.

Harith Iskander – “I Told You So”

Malaysian comic Harith Iskander endlessly pats himself on the back just for landing an international stand-up special. He asks, what am I going to wear on stage? How should I do my hair (he’s bald)? Should I call my special, “The Funniest Comedian in the World?” Check out my hot wife! Throw in some pointless crowd work and a hacky rimshot, and this is just painful.

Fakkah Fuzz – “Almost Banned”

Another Malay comedian, Fakkah Fuzz’s standup is strictly limited to differences between Malaysians and people from Singapore, which would be even more reductive if international audiences had any idea what he was talking about.

James Acaster – “Repertoire”

The pale, scruffy haired London comic James Acaster has not one, but four stand-up specials on Netflix. They’ve been framed as part of a comprehensive series, each color-coded and with a supposed theme. But after kneeling down for 15 minutes as a “loophole” to avoid actually starting the show, his childhood life story quickly unravels into goofy nonsense. He’s wacky, off-kilter and unusual, sure, but who has the time?

Katt Williams – “Great America”

Is Katt Williams even telling jokes anymore or just pimpin’? His cranky exuberance feels awfully tired when aimed at Trump. He’s performing to a Jacksonville, Florida crowd (and he unwisely opens with material that only plays to that room) that likely is pretty split politically, and his bland observations barely cut left or right.

Ricky Gervais – “Humanity”

Ricky Gervais’s special is called “Humanity,” but it’s all about him. Not ashamed of comparing himself to Jesus to start the show, Gervais spends the remainder of his time scoffing at his critics and explaining away already bad and tasteless jokes about Caitlyn Jenner he made at the Golden Globes years ago. “People get offended when they mistake the subject of the joke with the actual target,” he says, writing off any online backlash as just a misunderstanding. Inflating his ego is part of what you’re paying for with Gervais, but this is irritating even for him.

Rachel Feinstein – “The Standups” Episode 4

Neurotic, overly personal, loud and far too familiar to be surprising, Rachel Feinstein’s routine falls into cliche awfully quick. Why so many accents? And wow, you have parents who are bad on Facebook too?

Gad Elmaleh – “American Dream”

Gad Elmaleh’s material is inoffensive and pleasant, but rarely surprising. Some of his weaker gags can be boiled down to, “Americans tip like this, and French people tip like this.” He’s smart at deconstructing language. But what should’ve been fresh for Elmaleh, his first special entirely in English, results in some recycled gags about “em-pha-sis” and French doors from his 2017 Netflix special.

Gina Yashere – “The Standups” Episode 2

Gina Yashere observes that most people in Hollywood think black women look either like Halle Berry or Precious. Yashere is neither, a Nigerian woman from London, and she’s uniquely funny. But you wish her material would focus more on her own life rather than on clichéd, outdated observations of American culture. One joke stops just short of insights about why racism is far subtler in Britain and defaults to an easy swipe at the South. “I treated Alabama the way white people treat Africa the first time. Wow, they have cars and shoes and s—,” she says. And how many times does she have to sing the “Team America” theme song?

Brent Morin – “The Standups” Episode 5

Brent Morin is that bro who dominates the conversation at a party rattling off a story you lost track of hours ago. He’s got great little callbacks and one-liners and a hilarious observation about how if you’re a white guy, how flattering it is to be complimented by a black or gay guy. But is he still doing that butler impression of his Uber driver? How did he start complaining about bread at Italian restaurants? What’s a “sunshine hand?”

Marlon Wayans – “Woke-ish”

This is Marlon Wayans’s first ever stand-up special in a three decade career, and yet you know what you’re getting with him. It’s fun, raunchy and stupid, and it isn’t long before he crosses more than a few lines, thus his special’s title “Woke-ish.” Like Gervais, Wayans also has a tone deaf Caitlyn Jenner joke. “I ain’t seen a white chick that ugly since me and Shawn did the f—in’ movie!” But you might consider sticking around for his impression of Designer’s “Panda” or an amusing, if stereotypical, bit about white people going through customs to earn the privilege to say the N-word.

Joe List – “The Standups” Episode 1

White guy insecurities, childhood name calling and nearly 10 minutes about being awkward at the gym are a dime a dozen, but Joe List does it justice with a deadpan delivery and relatable awkwardness. List’s best story is about how as a kid, a girl said his big forehead looked like a “fivehead.” Yeah, that’s a pretty good burn.

Kavin Jay – “Everybody Calm Down”

The best of the three Malaysian comedians, Much of Kavin Jay’s charming material comes at the expense of his weight. But he acknowledges he’s not playing just to the room he’s in. “In Asia, parents use [my weight] to discipline children,” Jay says. “In America, I’m a medium.” At one point he even talks to some New Yorkers in the crowd. “I don’t know where that is. And now you know how that feels.”

Greg Davies – “You Magnificent Beast”

“The more upset you are, the funnier I find it,” Greg Davies says to someone in his crowd. This Welsh comic takes glee out of telling charming stories about his parents and his childhood before turning them disgusting. He has one routine about getting a giant teddy bear as a kid. He named it BT, like the alien Et. Aww, how sweet. He makes us think that’s the end of the story before revealing that as a teenager, “I f—ed that bear.” He couldn’t go out with friends because he was “too busy knocking the back end out of it!”

Fred Armisen – “Standup for Drummers”

Every word out of Fred Armisen’s mouth sounds like the start to some absurd, rejected “Portlandia” sketch, and I love it. Armisen is literally performing to a room full of people who know how to drum (Green Day’s Tre Cool pops up in the audience). Isn’t putting together a snare so annoying? I know! Sometimes his observations may genuinely be for an audience of one. But anyone will love his mini impressions of accents around the country and drumming impressions of Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, U2’s Larry Mullins Jr., Stewart Copeland and Meg White.

Tom Segura – “Disgraceful”

Those who want a replacement for Louis C.K. in the schlubby, cynical and brutally honest middle-aged white guy department can look to Tom Segura. But Segura isn’t trying to challenge social norms in the way C.K. used to; he’d rather troll people in the parking lot or talk up how great it is to never have to leave the house. One of his best gags makes a smart comparison to show how future generations will never understand how hard it once was to buy weed. Pigeons used to deliver messages? Are you crazy?

Aparna Nancherla – “The Standups” Episode 6

At first, Aparna Nancherla stands out as a socially awkward goofball, her cartoonish voice enhancing silly anxieties like what to say to a pilot upon leaving a plane. But she soon hauls out a PowerPoint presentation and brilliantly manages to translate Internet humor to the stage. Nancherla deconstructs emojis that look like a “multicultural boy band” or bullet points she grabbed from a Ted Talk random name generator, and she does it all in a deadpan weirdness that should make her a star.

Todd Glass – “Act Happy”

Todd Glass has put together a truly strange and subversive hour of comedy. More performance art than strictly jokes, Glass has a big band playing only public domain songs to put a button on his ironically hacky gags. He’s playing to a tiny room of 75 people, but he’s giving rants and monologues that he presents as larger than life, even asking the sound guy to give some reverb on his voice. The band taunts his “bragging” and the audience seems to be in on the joke. He even twice busts out into “song,” singing a time-killing anthem that he wrote in case he didn’t have enough material. But I could watch him for hours.

Chris Rock – “Tamborine”

For his first special in nearly a decade, “Tamborine,” Chris Rock immediately comes out swinging. His practical takes on the shootings of black kids, gun control and poverty are vintage Rock. But his material now reflects his middle age. You may disagree with some of his more Millennial-bashing takes, but he shows remarkable candor and great wisdom when he addresses his divorce and what it takes to keep a relationship going. The secret is to approach it like a tambourine player in a band. “You play that motherf— right!” Rock sure does.

Kyle Kinane – “The Standups” Episode 3

Kyle Kinane may be from my hometown of Addison, Illinois, but that’s not the only reason I can relate. His material has been bleak in the past, but in this set he speaks to the moment with insightful material about why he’s still recycling in the face of an apocalypse, Kurt Cobain’s Christmas album and a theory that the Ku Klux Klan has a great chef (“same outfits, different hats”). His finest gag takes full advantage of the pulse of the country and even plays on knowing he was taping this in advance for Netflix: “What if by the time this airs, there’s no mass shooting,” he asks. “This is America.”

Read original story 23 Netflix Stand-Up Comedy Specials of 2018 Ranked, From Ricky Gervais to John Mulaney (Photos) At TheWrap...

Oprah Winfrey, RuPaul, James Corden, Shonda Rhimes, Lin-Manuel Miranda and The Simpsons are among the big names up for this year’s 22nd annual Webby Awards, the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences announced today.

Competing for the trophy for Best Host (Podcasts & Digital Audio) are Winfrey, RuPaul and Questlove, while nominees for the Webby for comedy individual short or episode include The Simpsons’ “Donald Trump’s First 100 Days in Office,” and Welcome to America with Gad Elmaleh and Ron Livingston.

Up for best Entertainment (Mobile Sites & Apps) Webby are HBO Now, Rabbit,

Anchor, Marvel Unlimited Android App and Great Big Story. Among the nominees in the Best Writing category for podcasts and digital audio are the popular S-Town and Stuff You Missed in History Class podcasts.

Nominees are eligible to win the Academy-selected Webby Award and the Webby People’s Voice Award, with online balloting open through April 19. This...

With Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tying the knot in May, and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank set to marry in October, 2018 was already shaping up to be a big year for royal weddings. Now, it's been reported that another royal couple will be heading down the aisle later this year: Charlotte Casiraghi, granddaughter of Grace Kelly (and ninth in line to the throne of Monaco), and her boyfriend, Dimitri Rassam. So, if there was ever a moment to invest in a series of outlandish fascinators, it seems that time is now. According to People, Charlotte and Dimitri became engaged three weeks ago while enjoying a family skiing trip in Austria with Charlotte's mother, Princess Caroline of Monaco. At the annual Bal de la Rose in Monte Carlo on Saturday, March 24, Charlotte debuted a diamond engagement ring, paired with an equally attention-grabbing Saint Laurent gown festooned with feathers. Though the...

It has been seven years since Steven Spielberg's animated adventure film The Adventures of Tintin was released. Peter Jackson was supposed to direct the sequel after he was finished with The Hobbit trilogy but there's been radio silence on any development of the project for years.

But while Spielberg was making the press rounds for Ready Player One, Premiere asked him for an update and he confirmed that the sequel is still in development, saying:

"Peter Jackson has to do the second part. Normally, if all goes well, he will soon start working on the script. As it takes two years of animation work on the film, for you, I would not expect to see it for about three years. But Peter will stick to it. Tintin is not dead!"

That's good to hear! I really liked the first Tintin film and I've been hoping that the sequel would actually get made.

Netflix has confirmed that a slew of new original series will be debuting on the streaming service in March. There will also be new to Netflix seasons of some of your favorites from other networks. Likewise, there will be plenty of movies making their first Netflix appearances including the reboot of “Ghostbusters” and all the films in the “Cruel Intentions” franchise.

Of the new Netflix originals, several stand out as particularly binge-worthy, including the sophomore seasons of the Marvel series “Jessica Jones,” the Drew Barrymore laffer “Santa Clarita Diet,” and “A Series of Unfortunate Events.” And there are episodes of both the new David Letterman and Joel Hale talk shows as well as a comedy special from Ricky Gervais.

Available March 1

300

21 Thunder: Season 1 Netflix Original Series

2307: Winter’s Dream

Adel Karam: Live from Beirut Netflix Original

Adventureland

Algo Muy Gordo

Alpha and Omega

Battle Drone

Beerfest

Casino

Cruel...

As time marches on and tedium vitae sets in more and more with each passing day, we find ourselves with fewer ways to distract ourselves from the encroaching existential malaise. But wait — what’s that you say? All three “Cruel Intentions” movies are coming to Netflix next month? Maybe it’s not so bad after all.

Yes, dear reader, the benevolent streaming gods have once again announced the titles that we’ll be able to watch from the comfort of our own fainting couches once this month gives way to the next, and it isn’t just Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe who will be keeping us company.

Some other titles that will make their way onto many viewers’ lists and maybe even be watched include “Adventureland,” “Casino,” “The Descent,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” “Ghostbusters,” “Jackass: Number Two” (two words: butt chug), “Let Me In,” “Moon,” “Revolutionary Road,” and “Wet Hot American Summer.

Gad Elmaleh is returning to Netflix. Recently, the streaming service announced they've ordered a new special and TV show from the French comedian called Huge in France.The half-hour comedy is based on Elmaleh's life and will follow the comedian as he "leaves it all behind and moves to Los Angeles in an attempt to reconnect with his estranged, comedy hating, 16-year-old male model son. Sadly he'll have to do it without a single celebrity perk."Read More…...

Netflix is continuing its relationship with French comedy star Gad Elmaleh, greenlighting the humorist’s first original series Huge in France, as well as an English language stand-up special, for premiere worldwide on the internet TV network. Co-created, executive produced and starring Elmaleh, Huge In France, a half-hour comedy inspired by Elmaleh’s life and career, follows his move from France to the United States. Showrunners Jarrad Paul and Andy Mogel (The D-Train, The…...

Jerry Seinfeld, Kevin Hart and “The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah are among the comedy stars headlining this summer’s Just for Laughs festival in Montreal. Seinfeld will make his first appearance at the event since 1989 when he shares the stage with French-Moroccan comedian Gad Elmaleh at the Bell Centre on July 26. Hart will […]...

The Just For Laughs Festival unveiled its lineup for its 35th annual edition which runs July 12-31 in Montreal, Canada featuring a plethora of stand-up performances by Judd Apatow, Trevor Noah, Ali Wong, John Mulaney, Chris D’Elia, and Tom Segura. The signature marquee highlight this year to celebrate the fest’s milestone: Jerry Seinfeld will share the stage with France's biggest comedic star Gad Elmaleh for a one night performance on July 26. In addition, as part of the…...

CEO Reed Hastings throws down gauntlet to theatre owners over Bright release.

Netflix beat earnings expectations as it announced Q1 results on Monday, although subscriber growth lagged behind.

Net income grew year-on-year from $27.7m to $178.2m, revenues vaulted 35% to $2.64bn, and earnings reached 40 cents a share.

However the service added fewer new members than anticipated: 3.53m international streaming subscribers and 1.42m Us streaming subscribers.

Netflix had expected to add 5m global subscribers. The worldwide total stands at 98.75m.

In a note to shareholders, CEO Reed Hastings threw down the gauntlet to theatre owners.

“We are also open to supporting the large theatre chains, such as AMC and Regal in the Us, if they want to offer our films, such as our upcoming Will Smith film Bright, in theatres simultaneous to Netflix,” Hastings said. “Let consumers choose.”

Hastings said the company anticipated “better economics relative to licensing movies under traditional windowing”.

The executive said that Siege Of Jadotville...

Only a few days after Spanish and French tabloids published the first pictures of Charlotte Casiraghi and her new boyfriend Dimitri Rassam, Casiraghi seemed to confirm her relationship — with her fashion choices.

Princess Caroline‘s eldest daughter attended Monaco’s annual Bal de la Rose on Saturday (unescorted). For the event, Casiraghi, 30, wore a vintage black velvet dress, which several sharp-eyed royal watchers recognized: It was the exact number her mother previously wore to a high-profile Monaco event that she had attended alongside Rassam’s mother, Carole Bouquet, in December 2000.

Consider the dress a subtle wink. Photos of the 2000 event...

Exclusive: Kev Adams, the French actor, screenwriter and producer who is one of the most bankable actors in his home country, has signed with CAA. He starred in last year’s highest-grossing local-language feature, Les nouvelles aventures d’Aladin (The New Adventures of Aladdin). Adams, who is also a comedian, has about 5M followers on Twitter and also on Facebook and has chalked up 4.5M fans on Instagram. Now based in Los Angeles, he recently completed (with Gad Elmaleh)…...

France’s answer to Jerry Seinfeld, Gad Elmaleh, is getting a double showcase on Netflix. His latest one-man show, Gad Gone Wild, will be available for subscribers globally beginning January 24. That one is mostly in French, and will be followed by an English-language special exclusively for Netflix later in 2017. The Moroccan-born Elmaleh is a household name in France, known equally for his stand-up and feature film work. His credits include 1998’s Train Of Life; smash…...

It seems Amazon's new Crisis in Six Scenes show has been cancelled after one short season, by none other than creator, director, writer and star Woody Allen. The series dropped to Amazon on Friday, September 30, 2016.Elaine May, Miley Cyrus, Rachel Brosnahan, and John Magaro also star. Guest stars include: Joy Behar, Becky Ann Baker, Michael Rapaport, Margaret Ladd, Rebecca Schull, David Harbour, Christine Ebersole, Gad Elmaleh, and Lewis Black.Read More…...

A year after her tumultuous breakup with Gad Elmaleh, things are "remarkably normal" in Charlotte Casiraghi's life, a source tells People. Monaco's celebrated "princess without a title" (who is eighth in line to Monaco's throne and turns 30 on Wednesday) is "happy for the moment, enjoying what seems quiet stability" with Italian filmmaker Lamberto Sanfelice, 42. The couple, who reportedly met at the 2015 wedding of Beatrice Borromeo to Charlotte's brother Pierre, have been dating since October, and joined her mother Princess Caroline on a family skiing vacation in Zurs in January. This spring, Charlotte - whose grandmother is the late American actress-turned-...

Nearly one year after breaking up with Charlotte Casiraghi, French comedian Gad Elmaleh is finally going on record to confirm that they've parted ways - but that doesn't mean they don't still see each other. When asked by Wwd if Casiraghi had joined him for his recent move to New York City, Elmaleh explained that they are no longer together. "Me and Charlotte are not together any more but I go to see my baby," Elmaleh said, referring to the couple's son, Raphaël. "He also comes [to New York City] to see me. We stay close. We are a family." Related: Vin Diesel . . . as Prince Albert . . . in a Bobsleigh?...

Kirsten Howard Feb 21, 2018

This March on Netflix, you'll get Captain America: Civil War, Valerian, season 2 of Jessica Jones and Alex Garland's Annihilation...

As you probably already know, Netflix is a hugely popular streaming service that encourages binge-watching but also likes to check every now and then to see if you're still alive. It's nice like that.

See related Troy: Fall Of A City episode 1 review: Black Blood Troy: Fall Of A City - flipping the script on The Iliad Troy: Fall Of A City episode 1 spoiler-free review

There's a lot of new entertainment on the site every month, and we're going to compile it all for you here.

First up, the weekly series, slowly digested in reasonably-sized chunks:

Designated Survivor will return on the 1st, and Joel McHale's new news series will get underway. iZombie and Jane The Virgin will be back, and there'll also be more Black Lightning,...

Catherine Deneuve: César Award Besst Actress Record-Tier (photo: Catherine Deneuve in 'In the Courtyard / Dans la cour') (See previous post: "Kristen Stewart and Catherine Deneuve Make César Award History.") Catherine Deneuve has received 12 Best Actress César nominations to date. Deneuve's nods were for the following movies (year of film's release): Pierre Salvadori's In the Courtyard / Dans la Cour (2014). Emmanuelle Bercot's On My Way / Elle s'en va (2013). François Ozon's Potiche (2010). Nicole Garcia's Place Vendôme (1998). André Téchiné's Thieves / Les voleurs (1996). André Téchiné's My Favorite Season / Ma saison préférée (1993). Régis Wargnier's Indochine (1992). François Dupeyron's Strange Place for an Encounter / Drôle d'endroit pour une rencontre (1988). Jean-Pierre Mocky's Agent trouble (1987). André Téchiné's Hotel America / Hôtel des Amériques (1981). François Truffaut's The Last Metro / Le dernier métro (1980). Jean-Paul Rappeneau's Le sauvage (1975). Additionally, Catherine Deneuve was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category...

No one creates worlds quite like Michel Gondry, and his latest, "Mood Indigo," based on the book by Boris Vian, gave him plenty of material to play with. A fantastical romance, with invented pianos and vehicles, and featuring an all star cast (Audrey Tautou, Romain Duris, Omar Sy, Gad Elmaleh, and more), the director conjured up a story and setting like few you'll see all year. And today, we have a couple copies of the film on Blu-ray—featuring both the director's cut and extended version—for a few lucky readers. A whimsical love story set in a charmingly surreal Paris, the film follows wealthy bachelor Colin, whose hobbies include developing his "pianocktail" (a cocktail-making piano) and devouring otherworldly dishes prepared by his trusty chef Nicolas. When Colin learns that his best friend Chick, a fellow acolyte of the philosopher JeanSol Partre, has a new American girlfriend, our lonely hero...

If one can expect anything from Michel Gondry, it is that along with the whimsy and touch of the bizarre inherent in his work is an element of truth.  Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind uses erasure imagery to illustrate the pain of heartbreak. Be Kind Rewind has friendly video store employees creating their own versions of Hollywood hits for their neighborhood.  Gondry's latest film, love story Mood Indigo, however, is utterly drowning in whimsy and lacking any figment of truth.

Debonair and bearded Romain Duris (Populaire, The Beat That My Heart Skipped) stars as Colin, living off family money in a spacious Paris apartment. Audrey Tautou (Amelie, A Very Long Engagement) plays cute Chloe, whom Colin meets at a party. The plot goes something like this: guy meets girl, guy and girl fall in love and marry, flower grows in girl's lung.

There's also a B-plot, involving a friend (Gad Elmaleh,...

★★☆☆☆French director Michel Gondry is well-known for his eccentricities and wild imagination. However, with his latest quirksome endeavour, Mood Indigo (2013), the director falls into the trap of artifice over art, neglecting both plot and themes in favour of wild flights of unsubstantiated fancy. Gondry has based his film on Boris Vian's 1947 novel Froth on the Daydream. The story focuses on Colin (played by Gaelic heart-throb Romain Duris), a debonair member of the leisure class who wiles away his days creating strange whiz-bang devices (including a piano that mixes cocktails) in the company of gentleman's gentleman and gastronomic genius Nicolas (Omar Sy) and keen bibliophile Chick (Gad Elmaleh).

In a season where studios are spendings hundreds of millions of dollars on special effects to help tell fantastical stories, once again Michel Gondry is showing Hollywood how it's done. On a much smaller scale, and with far less cash, "Mood Indigo" presents no less an imaginative story, full with no shortage of Gondry-esque touches. And today we have some special items for Gondry fans. Starring Romain Duris, Audrey Tautou, Gad Elmaleh, Omar Sy, Aïssa Maïga and Charlotte Le Bon, "Mood Indigo" is based on the cult novel by Boris Vian and follows the the wealthy bachelor Colin, who falls headlong into a dizzy romance with Chloé. But when she succumbs to an unusual illness, one that causes a flower begins to grow in her lungs, Colin discovers the only cure is to surround her with a never-ending supply of fresh flowers. It's the perfect kind of story for Gondry to tackle,...

Kissing underwater two lovers revel in a perfect heavenly instant, oblivious to the unpredictably of calamity. Like the most luscious dessert their romantic odyssey brims with an engulfing sweetness, which only flaw is its finite nature. Every spoonful of vivid color in Michel Gondry’s whimsical paradise permeates the audience’s visual taste buds with a special blend of magical innocence laced with a devastatingly melancholic aftertaste. Orchestrated to beautifully obliterate the simplicity of reality “Mood Indigo” serves to materialize Boris Vian’s singular world through the director’s visionary imagination.

Sufficiently wealthy to finance his eccentric creative projects without the need for a job, insecure Colin (Romain Duris) lives in a vibrant apartment inhabited by adorably unique creatures. All of which come to life via a steady succession of artfully confected visual gimmicks. Stop-motion animation and practical trickery provide a marvelous physicality unattainable digitally. Colin’s butler turned live-in confident, Nicolas (Omar Sy), feeds him lavishly created dishes while declaring that real friendship can only be achieved from chasing girls together. This seems to become of crucial importance to the bachelor when his closest friend Chick (Gad Elmaleh), an obsessively devoted fan of writer Jean-Sol Partre, informs him he has a charming new girlfriend. Suddenly his “pianocktail” (a strange piano that mixes drinks based on the notes played) is not enough to keep Colin from feeling lonely.

Demanding to fall in love as well, the timid hero learns how to dance the sensual “biglemoi” and agrees to attend an upcoming soirée. Awkwardly scouting the crowd Colin meets the lovely Chloe (Audrey Tautou), whose delightful smile captivates him instantly. Whether flying on a cartoonish mechanical cloud while listening to catchy pop songs or clumsily ice skating the day away, Chloe and Colin courtship is a constant parade of imperfect situations but it's never dull. Beating Chick and his American girlfriend to the altar, the protagonists earn the right to marry racing in tiny cardboard karts. In one of the most gracefully dreamlike wedding sequences ever made, Gondry submerges the couple and his viewers in a moment of pure blissful romanticism.

But even in such a marvelous fantasy, inevitable injustice lurks around in the form of a flower that grows inside Chloe’s lung. Her fictitious illness makes for very real and intense emotions as Colin scrambles to see his beloved wife healthy once again. For the fascinatingly unrealistic realm the story exists in to work, the actors needed to be ready to fully dive into the uncanny atmosphere. In Tautou and Doris, Gondry found two perfect vessels to carry on the spirit of wonder evoked by the source material. They willingly give in to the extravagant poetry. They deliver heartfelt performances both incredibly joyous and, in Doris’ case, delicately gloomy. Colin attempts to literally rewrite his destiny, but the impending tragedy is unforgiving. With sadness taking over his life, the sun stops shining and all flowers are drained of color.

Gondry is a poet that writes with cinematic surrealist dreams. His vision is one of saturated beauty, so elegantly striking that is hard not to be seduced by it. In every frame the production design shines on its own without being overpowering. And even when the whole concept is about to become just a tad overwhelming, the soothing melody of the score balances the dynamic visual palette. Works like this, which come so sporadically, reinvigorate the notion of film as a limitless medium apt for the creation of the unlikeliest stories. “Mood Indigo” is an ocean of rapturous illusions for those who dare to swim in its breathtaking waters.

Read our interview with Audrey Tautou Here

"Mood Indigo" is now playing in L.A at the Nuart Theater and in NYC at the Sunshine Cinema...

Mood Indigo's Audrey Tautou with Michel Gondry at the Tribeca Grand Hotel premiere: "I like the bell. The doorbell that is like an insect." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Michel Gondry had a Tin Drum moment on the red carpet for his Mood Indigo*, starring Audrey Tautou and Romain Duris with Gad Elmaleh, Omar Sy, Aïssa Maïga and Charlotte Le Bon. Boris Vian transformed into Günter Grass with a Volker Schlöndorff image stuck in and out of Gondry's head ending up in Is The Man Who Is Tall Happy? An Animated Conversation With Noam Chomsky and out of a faucet in Mood Indigo. Tautou and Duris walked the red carpet in 2013 at The Paris Theatre - she for Claude Miller's Thérèse Desqueyroux and he for Régis Roinsard's Populaire.

Audrey Tautou at Mood Indigo New York premiere: "I was really intrigued by the imagination and phantasy of this universe." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

David Byrne,...

Courtesy of Drafthouse Films

Check out Audrey Tautou, Romain Duris & Omar Sy in a new clip from director Michel Gondry’s fantasy/romance Mood Indigo - opening in select theaters tomorrow.

If you’re in New York, make sure to catch Audrey & Michel at the Landmark Sunshine tonight, tomorrow & Saturday for exclusive Q&As.

Mood Indigo Clip Honeymoon from We Are Movie Geeks on Vimeo.

Director Michel Gondry will appear in person on Thursday, July 17 for a Q&A after the 7:30pm show.

He will also appear with actress Audrey Tautou on Friday, July 18 for Q&As after the 5:00pm and 7:15pm shows and to introduce the 9:30pm show. On Saturday, July 19, Michel Gondry will appear in person for Q&As after the 4:00pm and 6:00pm shows.

In her review, Amy Nicholson (La Weekly) writes the film is, “bitter candy, a heartbreaker that uses sugar as a trap.

From the moment it sputters to low-fi life, "Mood Indigo" is unmistakably the work of Michel Gondry, a sweet and sad little song of longing with the most visually inventive approach to emotion in any film this year. It is a strange surreal world that Gondry has created, one with no rules other than if someone in love starts coughing, that's not a good sign for them making it through to the end of the film. Gondry is a romantic, no doubt about it, and he's also a guy who rejects the idea of living a "normal" life, meaning his lead character is a man-child who drifts through his days, his whole mind focused on whimsy and the ridiculous. The worst thing in the world in this film is the notion of getting trapped into doing a "normal" job. Gondry seems to view that as death. Sure, he's working from a novel by Boris Vian,...

Michel Gondry is something of an enigma in the film world, and one who reportedly found himself in an uncomfortable position during and after The Green Hornet. His latest, Mood Indigo, is hitting in limited release on July 18th, and its the film to see this summer, if you get the chance.

Returning to the wonder of his beginnings (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), and taking a lot of notes from the past thirty years of French cinema, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (and, borrows his favorite leading lady), Gondry’s lastest looks like it could easily be one of the year’s best.

Check out the new clip below, which expands on their meeting, which is hinted at in the trailer above.

Courtesy of Drafthouse Films.

Mood Indigo Clip – Colin meets Chloé

Eminently inventive Michel Gondry finds inspiration from French novelist Boris Vian’s cult novel to provide the foundation...

Eminently inventive Michel Gondry finds inspiration from French novelist Boris Vian's cult novel to provide the foundation for this visionary and romantic love story starring Audrey Tautou (Amélie, Coco Before Chanel) and Romain Duris (The Beat My Heart Skipped). Set in a charmingly surreal Paris, Duris plays wealthy bachelor Colin, whose hobbies include developing his pianocktail (a cocktail-making piano) and devouring otherworldly dishes prepared by his trusty chef Nicolas (Omar Sy, The Untouchables). When Colin learns that his best friend Chick (Gad Elmaleh, The Valet), a fellow acolyte of the philosopher Jean-Sol Partre, has a new American girlfriend, our lonely hero attends a friend's party in hopes of falling in love himself. He soon meets Chloé (Audrey Tautou) and, before they...

We have an exclusive bonus feature clip from Oscar winner and acclaimed director Costa-Gavras' most recent feature Capital starring Gabriel Byrne and Gad Elmaleh. The Cohen Film Collection has digitally remastered this foreign dark comedy, which is now being released in deluxe Blu-ray and DVD editions today, June 10, 2014. Check out an exclusive interview with Gabriel Byrne, which traces his history with the project.

Move over The Wolf of Wall Street, Capital, based on the novel by St&#233phane Osmont and a prize winner at the San Sebastian Film Festival, is a fast-paced, darkly comic, suspenseful drama set in the high-stakes world of global finance. When the CEO of the giant Phenix Bank collapses on the golf course, Machiavellian young executive Marc Tourneuil is crowned as his replacement. A whirlwind of ruthless ambition, power struggles, greed and deception ensues as Tourneuils rise to power is jeopardized by a hostile takeover attempt...

While Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf Of Wall Street" has delivered the current pinnacle of financial world depravity, it doesn't mean other filmmakers aren't documenting the world of wheelers and dealers with an equally cynical perspective. Costa-Gavras ("Z," "Missing") is the latest, and with his "Capital" arriving on home video today, we have the exclusive opening seven minutes to get you primed on his take on high finance skullduggery. Starring Gad Elmaleh, Gabriel Byrne, Natacha Regnier, Hyppolyte Girardot, Lyia Kebede and Bernard Lecop, based on the novel by Stéphane Osmont and the essay "Total Capitalism" by former Credit Lyonnais president Jean Peyrelevade, the story follows Marc Tourneil, who is ushered into the head position at Phoenix Bank when the CEO is sidelined. Set up as a figurehead with the suits behind the scenes pulling the strings, Tourneil soon begins to assert his position and begins a ruthless climb of ambition,...

The Cohen Film Collection announced recently that two major films by acclaimed director Costa-Gavras – Capital, the Oscar winner’s most recent feature, and Amen, his César-winning historical drama from 2002 – have been digitally remastered and will be released in deluxe Blu-ray and DVD editions on June 10, 2014. The Blu-rays will have SRPs of $34.98 each and the DVDs will have SRPs of $24.98 each.

Wamg invites you to enter to win one of 3 Prize Packs containing the two films on Blu-ray.

Enter Your Name And E-mail In Our Comments Section Below. We Will Contact You If You Are A Winner.

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Since his debut in 1965, the Greek-born,...